A wide variety of applications in the industry of monitoring plant assets including machinery require an internal mounting arrangement of at least one transducer or sensor. For example, a mounting bracket may be used to strategically mount the transducer within a machine case and route a cable associated with the transducer out of the machine case. The routing of the cable through the machine case is usually through an adapter which includes some type of rubber grommet. The rubber grommet functions as, inter alia, a means for preventing fluid leakage through the case via an outer surface of the cable.
A junction box is typically mounted on or near the exterior of the machine case and encloses the electrical connections between the transducer cable and an extension cable that is used to route the output of the transducer to a processing unit.
As noted, the rubber grommet adequately prevents fluid from exiting through the machine case via the outer surface of the cable.
However, a long felt problem in the industry still exists in that the fluid permeates through cuts and cracks in an outer jacket of the cable and is wicked up by the interior and particularly the underlying braiding of the cable and is thus allowed to flow into the junction box and/or onto a plant floor. This not only causes a safety hazard, but an environmental hazard as well. Consequently, the junction box must be periodically drained of fluid and/or the plant floor cleaned.
Furthermore, fluid may penetrate to the interior of the cable by way of a transition area between the transducer and one end of the cable. Moreover, the transducer itself may become damaged and allow fluid ingression to be wicked up by the braiding of the cable such that fluid is drawn from within the interior of the machine case to an outside environment.
A need therefore exists for providing a cable which precludes fluid wicking within the interior of the cable such that the fluid is not drawn from within an interior of an asset including machinery being monitored to an outside environment. In addition, there is a need for a cable which precludes fluid wicking while remaining flexible so that it can be easily routed through machinery and conduit. Furthermore, there is a need for a cable which precludes fluid wicking while retaining its original ability to be readily electrically connectable to a transducer or sensor on at least one end.
The following prior art reflects the state of the art of which applicant is aware and is included herewith to discharge applicant's acknowledged duty to disclose relevant prior art. It is stipulated, however, that none of these references teach singly nor render obvious when considered in any conceivable combination the nexus of the instant invention as disclosed in greater detail hereinafter and as particularly claimed.
PATENT NO. ISSUE DATE INVENTOR 252,249 January 10, 1882 Philips 1,769,524 July 1, 1930 Maple 2,782,248 February 19, 1957 Clark 3,180,926 April 27, 1965 Trill 3,532,575 October 6, 1970 Nagata, et al. 3,639,201 February 1, 1972 Humphries 3,739,073 June 12, 1973 Schneider, et al. 3,789,099 January 29, 1974 Garrett, et al. 3,836,695 September 17, 1974 Strecker, et al. 3,885,380 May 27, 1975 Hacker 4,177,097 December 4, 1979 Hudson, Jr., et al. 4,227,043 October 7, 1980 Stohr, et al. 4,317,002 February 23, 1982 Spicer 4,385,203 May 24, 1983 Faranetta, et al. 4,599,487 July 8, 1986 Blank, et al. 4,746,281 May 24, 1988 Laugs, et al. 4,845,309 July 4, 1989 Vincent, et al. 5,041,950 August 20, 1991 Tyson 5,072,073 December 10, 1991 Becker, et al. 5,151,143 September 29, 1992 Downie